Police Blotter, April 28, 2013

Evans man charged with child porn

An Evans man was arrested Wednesday after authorities discovered child pornography on his laptop.

David Anthony Alexander, 36, of Skeeter Lane, was charged with sexual exploitation of children/possession of child pornography as part of Operation Guarding Innocence.

The three-month investigation, coordinated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, targeted 98 people statewide involved in Internet child porn trading.

Authorities on April 11 searched Alexander’s former address on Belair Drive that he shared with his mother, according to Columbia County sheriff’s Capt. Steve Morris. A computer seized there had nothing on it of interest to investigators. Alexander was tracked to Skeeter Lane, where investigators got Alexander’s consent to search his laptop. They found several files containing child pornography on the computer, which investigators seized for review.

Alexander turned himself in to authorities Wednesday within an hour of deputies making contact with his mother, according to Morris. He was released from the Columbia County Detention Center early Thursday after posting a $15,100 bond, according to jailers.

The following accounts were taken from reports from the Columbia County Sheriff’s office:

Hephzibah man charged in fight that broke deputy’s leg

A Hephzibah man was arrested Tuesday, charged with breaking into a former golf club and running from and fighting deputies.

Anthony Wayne Wangness, 47, of Cougar Drive, was charged with second degree burglary and obstruction of a police officer. He was being held in the Columbia County Detention Center Thursday on a $14,200 bond, according to jail records.

At about 12:30 p.m., a deputy found the iron gate blocking the entrance to the former Three Oaks Golf Club lying across the road. Two deputies removed the gate and went to the former course clubhouse, where they found the front door forced and propped open. The deputies found Wangness and an unidentified man inside. Both men ran out different doors.

A deputy caught Wangness, and they fought. Sometime during the chase and scuffle, the deputy broke his right leg. Wangness suffered a cut to his head and was treated at an area hospital and was taken to the jail after his release.

The other man had not been arrested as of Thursday.

Caller defies deputy’s order to stop calling

A Martinez woman called authorities Tuesday after a Facebook “friend” harassed her by phone.

The 32-year-old woman said she got a Facebook friend request from a man she doesn’t know, but she accepted the request anyway.

Her Facebook profile includes her phone number.

The man called and texted the woman several times despite her telling him to stop contacting her.

He called multiple times while a deputy was taking the woman’s complaint.

The deputy answered her phone and when the deputy identified himself, the caller said, “White Power. KKK.” He also told the deputy that “You don’t know the law. I’m in another state, and you can’t arrest me.”

After the deputy hung up, the man continued to call and text the woman.

Texts threaten harm to children

An Evans woman told deputies Wednesday that someone sent text messages with threats to harm her children.

The 29-year-old woman said she received a text message Tuesday from a number she didn’t recognize. The message included profanity and degraded her. One section of the text message read: “I will start with your brats one by one. Do you think they will call your name while they bleed to death.”

The message also included information about where her children attend school. She called authorities out of concern for the safety of herself and her children.